Summer Vacation Begins

Aloha,

Summer vacation has begun...sort of. Cory has finished the semester mentoring the new teachers and is finishing up a week of no work/school responsibilities! Cory had a great time working with these teachers and certainly learned a lot from the experience. He is currently working with his advisor on writing an account/summary of the field experience with two of the mathematics teachers with the hopes of having it published.

Allison, Shannon, Trevor, Cory, Julene, and Karl
Time off means that we have been to the beach...a lot! So what follows are basically beach pictures. Hopefully they don't seem too boring but rather show a little of what Leif enjoys doing and how his personality is really starting to grow!

Planting our little garden

Helping mix the sugar in the cookies...Leif likes the sugar

All ready for the ball game...we just don't what game he plans on playing

Helping make the pizza

Discovering the joys of chocolate pudding at Zippy's

May 2008...a lot of change in 1 year

Some of our favorite beaches right now are Ko Olina, Ala Moana, Waikiki (we usually go to the zoo first and then walk across the street to go to the beach), and Lanikai because Leif now loves playing in the water. One day he just took off and didn't get out of the water until an hour later. He particularly likes "swimming" which means he lays in the shore break and lets the water push him around, "surfing--getting on his boogie board and having mom or dad pull him around, or running into the water to rub handfuls of sand on dad. He has even had a few "wipe outs" where he goes under. Although he usually comes up crying, wants to be wrapped up in a towel, and needs to wipe off his face, he always wants to get back in the water; sometimes right away. He is really loves going to the beach.

Giraffes, rhinos, and zebras...Oh my!

Momma and Leif surfing at Waikiki Beach

Having fun in the sun

Can't wait for him to graduate to the big boards

Finding his own happiness

Watching the sun set at Ko Olina

I'm not so sure about this "salad" part but I love the olives

The Bennett Family

Swimming with turtles

Boys Day was May 5th so we celebrated it in style. We began by hanging up our carp "kites" and then went to the North Shore for a day of fun at Chuns Reef--Cory went surfing in solid 5 foot waves, Leif and Amanda played in the tide pools, and then we finished it off with a nice big shave ice from Aoki's!

Happy Boy's Day!

Flying "kites"

A great way to spend any day...with shave ice

Delicious!
One of our outings started with an 8:00 am start out the door. We first drove to Kailua and a wonderful "hidden" beach called Lanikai. We played in the surf and sun for a few hours, got lunch from Maui Tacos, and shared a HUGE scoop of chocolate ice cream from Coldstone before we made the drive to the Windward Mall in Kaneohe to try and tire Leif out on the indoor play area. It worked. While he slept we made the drive to Laie to go to the Polynesian Cultural Center as we have annual passes. The PCC is literally on the opposite side of the island and takes a good hour to drive there anyway, so when we are on that side of the island we like to try and make a stop.

Swimming with dad

Showing his silly side

Lovin' the beach

AAAHHHHHHHHH!!!

Strollin' through Kailua with mom

Cool! A fountain!

Ummmm...Chocolate!

This was a special day at the PCC as they were having their annual Samoan festival and International Fire Knife competition. Our free admission includes admission to the evening show which was when they were holding the finals for the competition. The finalists included a guy from Florida, Tahiti, and the Big Island and we had great seats for the action. It was very cool to watch and Leif was really into it. After an hour of the show and the first round of the finals, Leif was ready to go home so we packed up and made the long drive back to Ewa Beach, getting home around 9:00 pm...it was a long day!

Getting our fishing gear ready at the PCC

Trying to catch a big one

First time fishing

Playing an ancient Hawaiian game

First hula lesson...for both of us

Watching the Samoa performance at the evening show

Announcing the three competitors for the competition

Wow! Check out that Tiki-man, dad.

These guys must be crazy

aloha PCC

Summer classes will begin next week for Cory though one of them will be on line. With two classes this summer, two this fall, and two more in the spring we are hoping that his course will be done (then it is on to the dreaded comprehensive exam!). Amanda is loving her sewing machine and has several new quilts and projects started...so much fabric and so many patterns but so little time...ughh!

Aloha to you all and we hope to hear from you (or possibly come visit us in paradise) soon!

Cory, Amanda, and Leif

Easter Joy

Aloha and happy Easter

Even though this is Leif's third Easter it is the first one he has really gotten excited about. There was so much talk about the Easter bunny, singing Here Comes Peter Cotton Tail, decorating eggs, and playing with plastic eggs--even a few "practice" egg hunts to get him use to it--that Easter was exciting for the whole family.

Chocolate treats and a balloon...the Easter bunny was good to him

The new hair cut...read more below

Being silly with Dad

Leif and Momma with his new easter chalk

Going on an egg hunt

The weather has finally gotten better and we have been able to go to the beach a bit more, though it is still a bit on the windy side. The wind does mean that we got to fly Leif's new McQueen kite which he bought with money from his grandparents (he has a little piggy bank in his room). He loves the kite and now that he knows how to do it he doesn't want anyone to help him hold on...he gets excited when a big gust of wind blows and he says "Speed! cha-cow!" just like Lightening McQueen.

Flying kites at the beach

Trying it on his own

Leif checking out how big his pineapple is growing at home

Leif and his best friend Ronan
With Cory's flexible schedule this semester we have been able to get to the beach on those few days that it was nice. This included going to the Honolulu zoo, Waikiki, and Ala Moana beach park--the latter two are great for Leif to play in the water.

Seeing Rusty was a real treat...he is usually hiding.

Hanging out at Alamoana Beach Park

A big kiss for Momma

Gobbling up his animal crackers

Jumping with George
We have also been able to get to our beach after dinner from time to time, though some days are certainly colder than others due to the wind. Regardless, Leif loves the "jumpy rope" so we usually end up playing there for some time.

Taking a "little walk" to the beach

The plumerias are in bloom again

Swinging away on the jumpy rope

Some evenings are colder than others...even in the sun

Having fun!

Playing with Momma

What a great pair

Leif is currently into reading a lot of non-fiction, especially books about sharks, the ocean, coral, and fish. Thus, it was quite a surprise when grandpa and grandma sent a book about just these things. The book included a poster of a great white which Leif insisted on putting up above his bed. Sometimes when he goes to sleep he even tells the shark goodnight. At first we thought it might be too scary but he told us that it is "just a nice shark."

Leif and his "nice shark"

Leif's hair was starting to get a bit shaggy but he hates getting his hair cut. So what do we do as good parents??? Yup! Bribe him with ice cream. We tell him that he can have some of his "trim" ice cream if he will sit and let Daddy give him a little trim. In order to get a decent looking hair cut this process takes about four tiny scoops over a week.

Bangs are done

Amanda has been very busy sewing as usual. If you haven't checked out her quilting blog yet there is a link above under "Other Interesting Sites." Otherwise, we hope you are all well and look forward to seeing or hearing from you soon.

aloha and a hui ho

Cory, Amanda, and Leif

Spring is Here

Aloha!

Spring is here and it seems like the sunshine has returned, too. After nearly four weeks of windy, cold, and wet weather our typical tropical paradise has returned. March has been busy though we haven't been to the beach much. Amanda has put on some sewing classes for her "Mommy" friends with great success and Cory completed is portfolio for his National Board for Professional Teaching certification...he just has to wait until next November to see how he scored. There are not many pictures this time but enjoy them nonetheless!

All ready for the rain on his "little walk"

Talk about a dream come true...Amanda got a new sewing machine, which is likely the highlight of the month. We are hoping this machine lasts for some time and it likely will as it has way more features than anything she has used before.

Perhaps the sexiest sewing machine around...the Janome 6600

Mommy made Leif a new McQueen bag and it rocks!

Leif cuddling/harassing his cat Zephyr

Amanda took Leif to the Valley of the Temples in Kaneohe with her mommies group. They had a great time and Leif especially loved the "big golden man"...aka the Buddha statue.

Leif and friends at the Valley of the temples

The lolly made it a great trip to the Valley of the Temples

Leif and Daddy playing ukulele's...neither of us are too good

Not bad for a mouth full of grapes!

We hope you are also having a pleasant Spring and look forward to seeing and hearing from you soon!

aloha and a hui ho

Cory, Amanda, and Leif